Financial Analysis: MusclePharm (OTCMKTS:MSLP) & Spruce Biosciences (NASDAQ:SPRB)

MusclePharm (OTCMKTS:MSLP) and Spruce Biosciences (NASDAQ:SPRB) are both small-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership and risk.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for MusclePharm and Spruce Biosciences, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
MusclePharm	0	0	0	0	0.00
Spruce Biosciences	0	6	0	0	2.00

Spruce Biosciences has a consensus target price of $131.25, suggesting a potential upside of 1,500.61%. Given Spruce Biosciences’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Spruce Biosciences is more favorable than MusclePharm.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

15.5% of MusclePharm shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.7% of Spruce Biosciences shares are held by institutional investors. 60.7% of MusclePharm shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 6.9% of Spruce Biosciences shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

MusclePharm has a beta of -0.07, indicating that its stock price is 107% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Spruce Biosciences has a beta of 2.43, indicating that its stock price is 143% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares MusclePharm and Spruce Biosciences’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
MusclePharm	-38.51%	N/A	-169.56%
Spruce Biosciences	-555.23%	-62.10%	-47.49%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares MusclePharm and Spruce Biosciences”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
MusclePharm	$50.04 million	0.00	-$12.87 million	($0.58)	N/A
Spruce Biosciences	$4.91 million	0.94	-$47.92 million	($99.25)	-0.08

MusclePharm has higher revenue and earnings than Spruce Biosciences. Spruce Biosciences is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than MusclePharm, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

MusclePharm beats Spruce Biosciences on 7 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About MusclePharm

MusclePharm Corporation develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes sports nutrition products and nutritional supplements in the United States and internationally. The company offers a range of performance powders, capsules, tablets, gels, and on-the-go ready to eat snacks. Its MusclePharm brand product portfolio includes combat protein powder and combat crunch protein bars; and essential supplements, such as a BCAA, creatine, glutamine, carnitine, CLA, fish oil, multi-vitamin, and other products. The company also provides FitMiss branded sports nutrition products, which are formulated primarily for the female body to support women in the areas of weight management, lean muscle mass, body composition, and general health and wellness; and functional energy beverages under the Combat Energy and FitMiss Energy brands. It sells its products to various athletes and fitness enthusiasts. The company was incorporated in 2006 and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.

About Spruce Biosciences

Spruce Biosciences, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on developing and commercializing novel therapies for rare endocrine disorders. The company engages in developing tildacerfont, a non-steroidal therapy to enhance disease control and reduce steroid burden for patients suffering from congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), which is in Phase 2b clinical trial; and to evaluate glucocorticoid reduction in adult patients with classic CAH that is Phase 2b clinical trial. It is also developing tildacerfont for the treatment of pediatric classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia in children that is in Phase 2 clinical trial; and for females with polycystic ovary syndrome, which is in Phase 2 clinical trial. Spruce Biosciences, Inc. has a license agreement with Eli Lilly and Company to research, develop, and commercialize compounds for various pharmaceutical uses; and collaboration and license agreement with Kaken Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. to develop, manufacture, and commercialize tildacerfont for the treatment of CAH in Japan. The company was incorporated in 2014 and is headquartered in South San Francisco, California.